Praying the Rosary of the Song of Songs

his rosary is a compilation of many commentaries on the Song of Songs . Online sources can be found by visiting the links section at www.agardenenclosed.com. The format is used with kind permission from Father Adams Rosaries of Divine Union, as well as the Aramaic translation of the Our Father.

To pray the Rosary of the Song of Songs, a seven-decade rosary is used.

On the Cross or Crucifix:

In the Name of the Father, And of the Son, And of the Holy Spirit, Amen. The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want, You bring me to green pastures for rest, And lead be beside still waters Renewing my spirit, You restore my soul. You lead me in the path of goodness To follow Loves way. Even though I walk through the valley Of the shadow of death, I am not afraid, For you are ever with me, Your rod and your staff they guide me, They give me strength and comfort. You prepare a table before me
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In the presence of all my fears; You bless me with oil, My cup overflows. Surely goodness and mercy will follow me All the days of my life; And I shall dwell in the heart of the Beloved forever. Amen.

On the first bead after the Cross:

Our Father (translated from Aramaic)

O Eternal Father! Creator of heaven and earth, Focus your light within me, Create your reign of unity in me now. Your one desire acts with mine, As in all light, so in all forms. Grant what I need each day in bread and insight. Loose the cords of sin binding me, As I release the strand I hold of others guilt. Do not let surface things delude me, But free me from what holds me back. From you is born all ruling will, The power and the life to do, The song that beautifies all, From age to age it renews. Amen.

On the next three beads:

Lord Jesus, my Light! Lord Jesus, my Joy! Lord Jesus, my Peace, have mercy on me!

In the space after the third bead and the next bead:

Gloria Patri
Glory be to the Father, And to the Son, And to the Holy Spirit, As it was in the beginning, Is now, and ever shall be, World without end. Amen.

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For each mystery:

Name the mystery and, if desired, read the mediations. Pray the opening prayer, and on the bead before the medal, pray the Our Father.

On the ten beads following the medal:

Lord Jesus Christ, Son of the Living God, have mercy on me a sinner.

On the space after the last bead:

Gloria Patri
Continue as above until all the mysteries have been said.

After completing the seven decades:

Prayer of Praise
Blessing and glory, Wisdom and thanksgiving, Honor, power and might Be to our God forever and ever. Amen.

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Rosary of the Song of Songs

Pursuit and Satisfaction
he subject of this rosary is the Song of Songs , which under symbol and imagery describes the believers personal union with the Lord. Its central theme is spiritual fellowship and the believer s pursuit of Christ. It does not speak of how a person turns from the position of a sinner to the position of a believer; rather, it speaks of how a believer turns from a position of thirst to a position of satisfaction.

Song of Songs 1:2 - 2:7

The banner of this book is love, which is the word most frequently used. It speaks of the soul whose only desire is to be united to the Word of God and be in fellowship with Him, and to enter into the mysteries of His wisdom and knowledge as into the chambers of the heavenly Bridegroom. This Song is in contrast with Ecclesiastes. Ecclesiastes speaks of the unsettled life, but this Song tells us that man can only be satisfied by love. Someone has well said, If you love Jesus Christ, you will love this song because here are words that fully express the rapture of the heart that has fallen in love with Christ. When you read the book of Ecclesiastes, you read of mans search throughout the world for something to satisfy his heart, and the message of that book is simply that if a man gains the world it isnt enough. His heart is still empty because the heart is greater than its object. But the message of the Song of Solomon is that Christ is so tremendous, so mighty, so magnificent, that the heart that has fallen in love with him will never be able to fully plumb the depths of his love and his concern and his care. The object, Christ, is greater than the heart. Spiritual edification can never be separated from a pursuit that is based on hunger and thirst. If we do not have such a hunger and thirst, we will only have a poetic song, and it will not be the Song of Songs.

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First Mystery of the Song of Songs

Desire For Intimate Union
Let him kiss me with kisses of his mouth! More delightful is your love than wine! Your name spoken is a spreading perfume. (1:2,3)

Meditations:
A kiss is an expression of a personal relationship. A general relationship can no longer satisfy the Beloved. This is complete spiritual union: a real, permanent, and lasting experience of Gods nature. The kiss is the union of Gods Spirit to our spirit. There is a deep and abiding union that we can come to know. We cannot love a work, and we cannot love a power. We can only love a person, one who has a personality. The revelation of the person of the Lord invokes not only praise from men, but also love. In His mercy, God came out of obscurity and revealed Himself in human flesh. The Word became flesh and made His dwelling among us, and we saw His glory, the glory as of the Fathers only Son, full of grace and truth. (John 1:14) Jesus is the anointed One. I am the Light of the world. Through His name we are reminded that God has come. The ointment has been poured out in His death, resurrection and coming of the Holy Spirit. How precious is the name of Jesus! His greatness no one can fathom. (Psalm 145:3) Indeed, His love is better than wine. Of everything that brings us joy, elation, and excitement, the Holy Spirit shows us that nothing can be compared to His love. Once we have seen and known His love; is there anything under the sun that can compare with it? Let the Lord himself touch us within so that we may experientially know with understanding and thoroughly enjoy the touch of His interior grace.

Prayer:
O Eternal Father, may I come to know practically, through experience for myself, the love of Christ. Let the eyes of my heart be flooded with light, so that I may come to know what is the breadth, length, height and depth of your love. Grant that I may have the riches measure of your Divine Presence and become a body wholly filled and flooded with You Yourself. Amen. (Eph. 3:18,19.)

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Second Mystery of the Song of Songs

Pursuit
Draw me. We will follow you eagerly! Bring me, O king to your chambers. With you we rejoice and exult, we extol your love; it is beyond wine. How rightly you are loved. (1:4)

Meditations:
The power to run after the Lord comes from the drawing of the Father. We love Him, because He first loved us. (1 John 4:19) None can come to me except the Father draw him... (John 6:44) Human nature wants to follow God but is overcome by a habit of weakness as if bound by some law of nature and it lacks the power to follow him. It notices something in itself by which it stretches toward a goal and something in itself which makes it lack the power to do so; rightly it says, Draw me. For example: Paul noticed that he was willing but lacking power when he said, With my mind I serve the law of God but with my flesh I serve the law of sin, (Rom 7:25) and I see another law in my members fighting against the law of my mind. (Rom 7:23) Draw me, she says into the most inward parts of my spirit, so that I might completely run to You. I will run after You by turning toward You deep within my spirit. There You are, already drawing me toward You. This strength for the pursuit is not a mighty power from the Spirit that is given to us once for all. Running after is pursuing something continuously. His drawing power is our pursuing power. The chambers are the secret places, signifying the beginning of fellowship and revelation. When you pray, go to your inner room, close the door, and pray to your Father in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will repay you.
(Matt. 6:6)

Prayer:
Father of Glory, grant me a spirit of wisdom and revelation of insight into mysteries and secrets in the deep and intimate knowledge of You. (Eph.1:17) Let me know You as You are, that I may perfectly love You and worthily praise You. Amen.

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Third Mystery of the Song of Songs

Surrender
I am darkbut lovely, O daughters of Jerusalem as the tents of Kedar, as the curtains of Salma. Do not stare at me because I am swarthy, because the sun has burned me. My brothers have been angry with me; they charged me with the care of the vineyards: my own vineyard I have not cared for.

Meditations:
In the chambers she begins to discover what kind of person she is. Her blackness speaks of everything that is in Adam. However, at the same time, she sees that she is accepted in the Son of His love. I am indeed black in your judgment but beautiful through the enlightenment of grace. When God sees the Lords death, He sees a sacrifice of propitiation. When we see the Lords death, we see not only a substitution, but a union as well. . In Christ is the believers position before God, not his condition in the flesh. In Adam I was condemned, but in Christ I am forever freed from all condemnation. (Rom. 5:12) Through the enlightenment of the Holy Spirit, the Beloved realizes the vanity of her former work. She has only done what man entrusted to her, but not what God ordained for her. Before we know the Lord as our Lover, we must first know Him as our King. A life of consecration always comes before a life of love. My Father not as I will but, as you will. (Matt. 26:39)

Prayer:
O Lord Jesus, you are the hope and end of all my prayers. You alone never weary of me and can bear with my faults, because you love me with an infinite love. Therefore, O my God, have mercy on me and do with me, and for me, and in me, whatever You will, for I give myself entirely to you with full confidence that you will never reject me. Amen.

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Fourth Mystery of the Song of Songs

Pasture And Rest
Tell me, you whom my heart loves, where you pasture your flock, where you give them rest at midday, lest I be found wandering after the flocks of your companions. (1:7)

Meditations:
Again through the enlightenment of the Holy Spirit, she realizes that a Christians need is not work, but personal food and rest. Come unto me all you who labor and are burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am meek and humble of heart; and you will find rest for yourselves. (Matt. 11:28,29) This is a complete rest. Noon is the perfect position. When the sun reaches noon, it will not grow any brighter. I am the Good Shepherd. (John 10:11) You bring me to green pastures for rest and lead me beside still waters renewing my spirit, You restore my soul. You lead me in the path of goodness to follow Loves way. (Psalm 23:2,3) The Lamb who is in the center of the throne will shepherd them and lead them to springs of life-giving water, and God will wipe away every tear from their eyes. (Rev. 7:17) The Beloved seeks to learn the nature of Eternal Love. She does not want to wander into a human path, under some guise of false spirituality, and be misled by self-love. If we follow a human path we turn aside from the true Way. We may jump from one spiritual guide to another and frequently change our beliefs without ever arriving at anything solid. I am the Way, the Truth and the Life. (John 14:6)

Prayer:
Father, enable my mind to rise to your ineffable dwelling place. Let me find the light and direct the eyes of my soul to you. Dispel the mists and the opaqueness of the earthly mass, and shine out with your splendor. You are the serene and tranquil abode of those who persevere in their goal of seeing you. You are at the same time the beginning, the vehicle, the guide, the way and the goal. Amen.

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Fifth Mystery of the Song of Songs

An Exchanged Life
To the steeds of Pharaohs chariots would I liken you, my beloved: Your cheeks lovely in pendants, your neck in jewels. We will make pendants of gold for you, and silver ornaments. (1:9-11)

Meditations:
While still enslaved to vices and works of the flesh, God has chosen to focus upon what He accomplished in us through predestination. In accordance with his hidden judgment and hidden predestination, looks upon us, not as we are, but as we shall be. Radically transformed in love, leading holy lives. It takes considerable time to beat gold into borders. Borders of gold signify a fine work, a most fine manifestation of Gods life. Replacing ones natural strength with Gods life, and glory. Replacing that which is from man with that which is from God. Who shall deliver me from the power of sin? Thanks be to God, through Jesus Christ, our Lord. (Rom 7:24,25) I am the Vine and you are the branches. Whoever lives in Me and I in him bears much fruit. However, apart from me you can do nothing. (John 15:5) I am confident of this, that the One who began a good work in you will continue to complete it until the day of Christ Jesus. (Phil. 1:6)

Prayer
Lord Jesus Christ, make me an instrument of your will, a vessel of your love. May I abound in and be filled with the fruits of righteousness. O Blessed Uncreated Light, shine your Light into my darkness that I may see clearly and come to know intimately the full knowledge of Your grace and love. Amen.

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Sixth Mystery of the Song of Songs

Gods Provision
I am a flower of Sharon, a lily of the valley. As a lily among thorns, so is my beloved among women As an apple tree among the trees of the woods, so is my lover among men. I delight to rest in his shadow, and his fruit is sweet to my mouth. (2:2,3)

Meditations:
The lily of the valleys is ordinary and unassuming. It is not cared for by man, but by God. Consider the lilies of the field and learn thoroughly how they grow; they neither toil nor spin; (Matt 6:28) Therefore, I delight to rest in His shadow. The one who sits on the throne will shelter them. They will not hunger or thirst anymore, nor will the sun or any heat strike them. (Rev. 7:15,16) In His shadow we rest beneath a covering of protection: Love, Light, Mercy, and Grace. God is Love (1 John 4:8, 16). Divine Love is the motivating plan behind all that God does in saving a soul. Gods revelation of Himself declares His love as strongly as His existence. God is Light (1 John 1:5). Robed in light as with a garment. (Psalm 104:2) Granting to us spiritual illumination by the indwelling Holy Spirit. Mercy is a form of love determined by the state or condition of its objects. Their state is one of suffering and need, while they may be unworthy or ill deserving. Mercy is the compassion of God, which moved Him to provide a Savior for the unsaved. Grace rules out any human merit. It requires only faith in the Savior. Any intermixture of human merit violates grace. Gods grace provides not only salvation but also safety and preservation for the saved one, despite his imperfections. Grace bestows Christs merit and Christs standing forever. (Rom. 5:1; 8:1; Col 2:9,10). Grace obviates any obligation to gain merit.

Prayer:
Almighty God, I raise my voice in praise, You who are my refuge and my strength. According to your Mercy and Grace, I dwell in the shelter of Infinite Light and beneath the wings of Infinite Love; in You alone will I trust. You are the God of my salvation. Amen.
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Seventh Mystery of the Song of Songs

The Banquet Hall
He brings me into the banquet hall and his emblem over me is love. Strengthen me with raisin cakes, refresh me with apples, for I am faint with love. His left hand is under my head and his right arm embraces me. (2:4-6)

Meditations:
The King sits at His table. The condition for being at the same table is to open the door, the inner door. Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will enter his house and dine with him, and he with me. (Rev. 3:20) We enjoy the food of the Lord, the Lord Himself, His life, His death and His resurrection. We eat of Gods accepted sacrifices; all that Jesus attained for us as our propitiation. We eat of the Lord Himself when we partake of the Holy Eucharist and through prayer and contemplation. We eat of His life when we minister to others. As Jesus stated to the apostles after ministering Love to the Samaritan woman at the well, I have had food to eat which you do not know. (John 4:32) We eat of His death when we surrender our will, desiring only His will. Picking up our cross of death to our will. My food is to do the will of the one who sent me. (John 4:34) If anyone wishes to come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross daily. (Luke 9:23) We eat of his resurrection when we behold the Lord. As the eyes of the heart are focused upon Jesus, we are changed from glory to glory. As Jesus prayed, I wish that where I am, they also may be with me, that they may see My glory that you gave me. (John 17:24) I will make it known, that the love with which you loved me may be in them and I in them. (John 17:26) All of us, gazing with unveiled face on the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, as from the Lord who is the Spirit. (2 Cor. 3: 18)

Prayer:
O Sacred Heart of Jesus, fountain of Eternal Life. Your Heart is a glowing furnace of Love. Consume my heart with the burning fire of love with which Yours is aflame. Pour down on my soul those graces that flow from Your love. Let my heart be united with Yours. Let my will be conformed to Yours in all things. May Your will be the rule of all my desires and actions. Amen.
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